Grimdark future, huh?
by Tigercule
Summary: A bleak and terrible future? Ezreal can handle that without losing his cool. It's not until he sees something familiar that he starts to break down.
1. Unfamiliar Surroundings

**Author's Note: I don't own League of Legends or any of the characters in this story.**

**This is inspired by a picture drawn by a friend of mine of Pulsefire Ezreal where it looked like he was wearing Pink Taric's belt around his neck. A little crappy editing on my part later, and I had colored the image. Me being the crazy person I am, I couldn't simply leave it at that, so this fic was born.**

**There's slight gore warning in the first of the two endings (because I couldn't make up my mind on which ending I liked better), but if you can handle looking at Sion or Hecarim's in-game models, you should be able to handle reading that ending. I'll repeat this warning at the beginning of that chapter.  
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**Enjoy the story. :)  
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Ezreal awoke with the distinct feeling that something was wrong, and the fact that his head was abuzz with pain certainly didn't help matters. He opened his eyes, then immediately wished he hadn't.

"Where am I?" He had taken to speaking aloud in his travels; when a person had only themselves as company, they learned to make the best of it. Not only that, but he swore it helped cement things to his memory to be related to Taric when he returned home.

The surroundings were like nothing he had ever seen before. The sky was a dark brown with periodic red streaks and occasional eddies of grey. The ground was a dull, rusty tone, flat as far he could see. There were no trees, animals, or natural objects anywhere. In the distance he saw what looked like black smoke, but that was very far off.

"The last thing I remember," Ezreal began, trying to work out what had happened, "is exploring the Southern Wastelands then getting sucked into some sort of vortex in the air - kind of like quicksand… So how did I get here?" He sat up slowly, considering for several moments as his headache began to die down. What was even more disturbing for him was that he couldn't feel at all where he was. Normally, wherever he was he could feel a sense of location; with his magical gauntlet's aide, he could even sense directions to his destination without the need of any sort of physical map. Here, he read nothing. For that matter, he couldn't feel the usual sense of power emanating from the glove adorning his left hand. Reality sunk in, and he realized he was stranded, with no idea where to go.

Instinct told him to avoid the black smoke and get as far from it as possible, so he turned, looking at the horizon in the opposite direction. There wasn't much of note; just the same brown and grey -

"Wait. What was that glint? It looked almost like metal.."

With no better options in sight, Ezreal decided he might as well head towards the silver he had observed in the distance. Perhaps it was a city and he could get an explanation. It had looked too small, but Ezreal wasn't one to give up hope so quickly, so he made his way off.

After walking what he judged to be several miles, he reached the source of the silver he had seen. It wasn't a city.

From what the Explorer could tell, it was an odd mess of wires, tubes, and what looked suspiciously like a design he had seen on Heimerdinger's wall once labeled 'jetpack.'

"This can't be real." Ezreal told himself as he sorted through the wires and came to the realization it was some sort of body suit. Briefly, he wondered if he should leave it where he found it, but his curiosity got the better of him.

After much difficulty, Ezreal managed to slip into a wire-covered sweatsuit, complete with boots and gloves, and all a size or three too large for him. He had just slipped the backpack-thing onto his back, and put what looked like Gentleman Cho'gath's monocle over his left eye when there was a quick jab in the back of his neck near his spinal chord. There was a strange feeling of sharing his brain with someone, as if someone was reading his thoughts. No sooner had this happened than he heard a strange female voice inside his head, "Thermal reactor online."

The backpack made a strange hissing sound and Ezreal began to panic. Several flaps opened off of it, though he couldn't tell what was happening. "Fusion core active."

That was more than the poor Explorer could stand. Just as he was trying to peel off the left glove, a large cylindrical object formed around his hand. "Pulsefire cannon charging." There was a faint glow that quickly grew to a blinding intensity as objects clicked and whirred inside what he assumed to be the cannon.

The female voice came again, "Hello Ezreal, I am pleased to serve you." The Prodigal Explorer's panic levels hit maximum before he suddenly felt himself inexplicably growing calm. "I am PEARL, the AI in your suit. I have taken the liberty of injecting calming sedatives into your bloodstream for your own safety."

"Hi PEARL," Ezreal found himself saying. Maybe it was the sedatives, but it somehow seemed normal. Briefly he wondered if PEARL did anything other than talk, but he was immediately answered by that same voice.

"I monitor your vital signs, provide information and tactical assistance, have over nine thousand aziobytes of information stored in my databases, offer companionship, supply translation services, and am in charge of maintaining the physical part of the suit. Essentially I am hardwired into your brain to make your life an easier, less unpleasant place."

"Alright… Cool. I need... I need to sleep now." With that, Ezreal passed out, the strain of having a super computer uploaded into his brain in under a minute more than he could handle.

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**AN: For the record, Aziobytes are my own invention and not real in the slightest. I'm not all too clear on how much data the actual PEARL database would take up, so I made up a unit of measurement to avoid making the database too small.**

**Also, I've been working on this fic for the past 4-5 hours and now need sleep. I'll post the rest later/tomorrow.  
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**Please leave comments with feedback if you have a moment? I'm pretty new to fic writing, so anything (positive or negative) would mean a lot. :3  
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	2. History Lessons

**Author's Note: Thank you so much WaddleBuff for your review. It means a lot to me. :3**

**The origins of the suit are touched on in this chapter, but I kinda neglected to mention how he got to the future because I was basing this roughly off of RiotRunaan's post on PFE's lore. (Ezreal stumbles into time warp and finds himself in the war-torn future. More explained in the story)  
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**I also did as you said with the description, and thanks again.  
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The first thing Ezreal noticed when he came to was that the suit which had previously been too large on him now fit him as perfectly as if it had been made for him. The second was that if he focused on any part of himself, a visual display came up with analysis and more information than he could ever need. Training his vision on rocks and other objects brought up the same display complete with information about that item.

"What else can this suit do, PEARL?"

"Some features are currently unavailable, as I am continuing to interface with your brain. This shall be remedied with time as we work together. Current display features include scans and magnification. Physical assets include increased strength, stamina, and speed. Enhancements to your natural abilities include short-range teleportation, small magical, straight-line missiles, and the Pulsefire Cannon. You can use these in much the same way your memory recalls using the glove you wore previously. The jetpack in your suit provides short bursts of flight and should be operational within the next five minutes."

Ezreal glanced down at the ground, unsure of how he felt about not being firmly planted on it. A visual reading immediately came up, showing details about the dirt that proved it to not have been fertile in years.

"I don't suppose you could tell me where I am, PEARL?"

"You are on Runeterra, standing over what was once a forest near Demacia."

"THIS IS RUNETERRA? I don't believe you! What the hell happened?"

"Piltover blamed Zaun for your disappearance almost fifty-one years ago, and relations between the two grew more and more tense over a period of three years. After a Piltovian protest on the steps of the League was violently ended by Zaunite officials, outright war was declared." As PEARL spoke, video feeds appeared before Ezreal, showing him important events in history in graphic detail.

"As their technology increased, so did the destruction they caused. Twenty-eight years after the beginning of the war, a Zaunite scientist by the name of Gered discovered a weapon powerful enough to destroy all of Piltover. Eager to milk the situation for money, he sold the secret to Piltover after the construction had started in Zaun. What he didn't realize was that Piltover had the technology to construct it faster, resulting in both weapons being completed and launched on the same day which was recorded by historians as 'Ending Day.'

"Both Piltover and Zaun were destroyed simultaneously, and deadly toxins were released into the air. Noxus was the first to be affected, with Demacia and Freljord falling soon after, and Bandle City not long after that. Eventually the toxins covered the planet and there was nowhere safe to live. The last known living Yordle died eight months after Ending Day, with the last human following a month after.

"It has been nineteen years since then, and had you come another six months from now, I would no longer be functional."

"Wha- why?" Ezreal didn't even know how to begin to consider the horrors of the war, so he focused instead of the smaller facts presented.

"The PEARL units were designed to coexist with a human or yordle partner. Our power sources last 20 years on our own, but after that, nothing. I am the last remaining suit that I am aware of."

The explorer sat silently for a moment. He had a lot to take in; all of life was dead and he was to blame.

"You are not to blame."

He was to blame AND he had a robot suit in his mind reading his thoughts that he had essentially saved from extinction, the irony of which was not lost on him considering it could do so much more than he could- That was it!

"PEARL, scan the horizon for anything of note. Signs of life, food, water - anything."

"You will find no life."

"Scan anyway."

With what sounded suspiciously like a robot version of a sigh, Ezreal's vision started cycling through various objects both near and far. Despite PEARL's insistence that he would find nothing, Ezreal was bound and determined to find traces of civilization. SOMEONE had to have survived; robots couldn't know everything.


	3. It's the little things that break us v1

**Author's Note: I wrote two separate endings (with some similarities). Both advance the story to the same point, and I want to end up writing an ending where he gets back to the past (present? I dunno; his real time). We'll see if I can get it together or not.**

**The difference between the two endings is marginal. This one is my preferred ending, but the other is slightly less detailed and he discovers the discovery differently. I suggest you read them both anyway.**

**Thanks for reading this far, and I hope you enjoy.  
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"Skip. Skip. Skip." Ezreal was sick of rocks. No matter how much different information he could get on them thanks to PEARL, they weren't what he was looking for. "PEARL, stop scanning. I want to see for myself."

"Scan terminated. Let me know if I can be of further assistance."

"Roger that." As he took another look around, he noticed a splash of color in the distance. He wasn't sure how he had missed it; the vibrant pink standing out against the murky browns and greys of the horizon. "PEARL, magnify please."

He instantly wished he hadn't given the order. His heart felt like it had dropped out of his chest and there was a sudden tightness in his throat. The color he had first noted out of the corner of his eye now showed itself through PEARL's magnification to be a brilliant pink belt with white detailing. He had personally removed that belt far too many times to mistake it for any other, and seeing it without its owner was a very disconcerting feeling.

"Pearl, take me over there." He wasn't sure what he was going to see, but he had to know what had happened. If there was even the slightest chance that Taric had made it through the disaster alive, he had to follow up on it.

A familiar pink glint caught his eye the moment he arrived, and he instantly tore at the dirt and debris. Moments later, he recognized the hammer he had never seen Taric without. It struck him as particularly treasonous that the gems in the hammer were so bright and full of life when their owner was nowhere in sight.

Or was he? His stomach lurched sickeningly as he noticed a pale object protruding from the earth. He had been in enough tombs and archaeological digs to recognize bone when he saw it, even when mostly covered by dirt. His head reeling, Ezreal reached out for something to hold himself steady. This proved counterproductive as his hand found its way to a smooth surface he instantly recognized as Taric's shield, abandoned and half-upright in a pile of rocks, earth, and what Ezreal knew were bones that belonged to the hand.

After he had finished losing what little was left in his stomach, he stumbled to his feet once more. He knew what he had to do now. He glanced around for a suitable object, until he finally found a stone slab perfect for his needs. "PEARL, I need to carve into this rock, okay? Not enough to go through; just enough to make a clear indentation."

"Processing request."

Soon after, he had finished. It wasn't the most eloquent of words, he decided, but it would do. He didn't have much practice in this type of thing, after all.

Here lies Taric, the Gem Knight

Never shall there be a man more

gracious in both love and friendship.

He shall be dearly missed.

Ezreal sighed, brushing away a traitorous round of tears. He glanced to the belt that had brought him here, then picked it up and pressed it to his face as though by doing so he could bring Taric back to life. After several moments he shook his head, clearing his mind momentarily.

"PEARL, start scanning for temporal disturbances like the one you sensed before I found you. Maybe there's a way out of here."

"You will be informed the moment I find one."

The voice went silent once more, leaving him to his grief. Taking one last glance at the gravestone, Ezreal wrapped the belt around his neck, fastening it tightly so he would never lose it. "Taric, I'm going to get home, I promise. I'm not going to give up on you." With that, he activated his jetpack and started off in the direction from which he had come determined to make good of his word.


	4. It's the little things that break us v2

"Skip. Skip. Skip." Ezreal was sick of rocks. No matter how much different information he could get on them thanks to PEARL, they weren't what he was looking for. "PEARL, stop scanning. I want to see for myself."

"Scan terminated. Let me know if I can be of further assistance."

"Roger that." As he took another look around, he noticed a splash of color in the distance. He wasn't sure how he had missed it; the vibrant pink standing out against the murky browns and greys of the horizon. "PEARL, magnify please."

He instantly wished he hadn't given the order. His heart felt like it had dropped out of his chest and there was a sudden tightness in his throat. The color he had first noted out of the corner of his eye now showed itself through PEARL's magnification to be a brilliant pink belt with white detailing. He had personally removed that belt far too many times to mistake it for any other, and seeing it without its owner was a very disconcerting feeling.

"Pearl, take me over there." He wasn't sure what he was going to see, but he had to know what had happened. If there was even the slightest chance that Taric had made it through the disaster alive, he had to follow up on it.

He soon found himself standing on a large mound of earth at the base of a stone slab. The belt he had seen was draped over the corner of the slab, held there by a notch obviously made for such a purpose. Both belt and slab had quite clearly been there a long time, as neither were the better for wear.

Ezreal picked the belt up gingerly, turning it over again and again before glancing at the stone slab it had been resting on. He realized with a start that there was some sort of indentation that had been revealed when he brushed against it, and quickly set to dusting off the debris covering the remainder.

Here lies Taric

He used his healing on others until the very end

May he rest in peace

"No.. It can't be." The Prodigal Explorer brushed his right hand against his eyes, his tears momentarily still against the metal of his gloves before making their descent to the ground.

"Scans confirm the remains of one human male beneath the ground you are standing on, Master Ezreal. He appears to have died of-"

"Shut up!" It wasn't fair of him to chastise the computer and he knew it, but at the moment he didn't care. "Leave me alone! I don't want to know!"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than the whirring and humming of the suit stopped. Ezreal hadn't realized how much of a familiar comfort they had become until they were gone. He shivered as a small breeze kicked up; previously the armor had been a source of heat that had kept him from feeling how cold this barren world was, but without the computer active, he was truly alone.

"Listen, PEARL," Ezreal began, not sure if the AI of his suit could even hear him. "I'm sorry. That man… He meant a lot to me."

"A typical human, emotional response. You are forgiven."

Never had the Explorer been more relieved to hear the robotic voice. "Thanks, PEARL."

He sighed, brushing away another round of tears then pressed the belt to his face as though by doing so he could bring Taric back to life. After several moments he shook his head, clearing his mind momentarily.

"PEARL, start scanning for temporal disturbances like the one you sensed before I found you. Maybe there's a way out of here."

"You will be informed the moment I find one."

The voice went silent once more, leaving him to his grief. Taking one last glance at the gravestone, Ezreal wrapped the belt around his neck, fastening it tightly so he would never lose it. "Taric, I'm going to get home, I promise. I'm not going to give up on you." With that, he activated his jetpack and started off in the direction from which he had come, determined to make good of his word.

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**Author's Note: I wasn't originally planning on going further with this story, but now I kind of want to get him home as well. ****Thanks again for reading, and for the reviews that made me feel loved. They may or may not have influenced me getting an idea on how to completely finished this. .;** With any luck I'll get it done, but no promises.


	5. There's no place like home

**AN: **Sorry this took so long; I was having trouble figuring out where to go with it. I hadn't been planning on writing more originally. The shipping is mostly in the end, but I just spent 6 hours reading fluff fics and asdfaf if they don't make me want to write feels stories. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the (new and final) ending.

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"Ezreal, there is another temporal disturbance forming less than half a mile from here. Utilizing the jetpack, you should be able to reach it before it closes."

PEARL's news brought Ezreal out of his reverie instantly. "Alright, let's go." Hopefully this disturbance would pay out. In the past fourteen hours, PEARL had led him to four such potential gateways to his own home time; the first had been too small to use, two had been forward gates, and the last had closed the moment he reached it. It had been more than two days since Ezreal had food or water; his rations were in the pack he had been wearing before getting sucked into the future, and that was long gone. His time was running low, and he knew that if he wanted to survive he would need to get home. Once home he could hunt for food until he returned to the Institute of War, but in this barren wasteland there was nothing. This might be his last chance.

The moment Ezreal saw the shimmering disturbance, he knew it was too weak. With strong disturbances it was like looking into a window where the glass was melted into strange shapes; the picture from the other side was distorted, but you could still generally make out what it was. This disturbance was more like the base of a painting that had been left unfinished; he could tell something was there, but the colors bled into each other and none of the shapes were well enough defined to make out what it showed.

"PEARL, is there any way to strengthen the disturbance? I've got to know where this goes!"

PEARL's answer sounded almost hesitant, giving Ezreal the feeling she was holding out on him. "There are no known methods. I shall resume searching for temporal abnormalities."

"Damn it all!" There wouldn't be time to find another disturbance; Ezreal was already running on the last of his strength. The temporal gate was slowly losing color, its already unsteady edges continuing to lose form.

Ezreal couldn't believe it. He had survived countless booby-trapped tombs, dealt with bloodthirsty natives, wrestled with unnatural beasts, fought champions in the League of Legends, and now he was going to die in a dead world with no one around but the voice in his suit.

Maybe he still had one chance. "PEARL, what would happen if I used my Arcane Shift to get through the gate?" It didn't really matter what she said; he'd do it anyway out of desperation. He just wanted to know the odds.

"Scientific data leads to a 99% chance you would end up six feet from where you are now and looking through the other side of the disturbance, 0.8% chance your atoms would be dispersed in the portal, and 0.2% of success."

"Then let's do it." Ezreal grinned, calling on the magic flowing through his veins, then blinked with all the force he could.

Upon opening his eyes, he was crushed. He was sure it would work, but instead he was standing on the other side, looking at the same portal with the picture now reversed. He was doomed to die in the future; he had failed.

Ezreal screamed in frustration and made his decision. His last act in the world would be to destroy the portal even if it was just a petty act of defiance. Bringing the Pulsefire cannon level with the portal, he fired.

Everything went white.

"He's coming to!"

"Give him space!"

Ezreal groaned, feeling like he had taken a Malphite ultimate directly to his head. Opening his eyes, he stared as his vision cleared. He recognized the room as the hospital wing of the Institute of War, and the people standing around him were definitely the medical staff (he could recognize Akali and Shen anywhere) but the last thing he remembered was firing on the dimensional disturbance. "How did I get here? How am I alive?"

"I can't answer the first question, but as for the second… The contraption you were wearing informed us of your injuries through some sort of projection system, so it was quite easy to treat you."

After the nurses and doctors had left the room, Ezreal bit his lip. There was only one person he had hoped to see, and he hadn't shown. He set his mind to changing, focusing only on discarding the hospital gown and getting the Pulsefire jumpsuit back on. He was so involved in distracting himself from his thoughts that he almost missed the sound of a man clearing his throat from the doorway behind him once he was fully clothed.

Ezreal grinned, drinking in every familiar detail, from the fuzzy fuchsia leg warmers to the sparkling pink gem in the man's tiara. He crossed the room quickly, throwing himself into the Gem Knight's arms.

Taric smiled at Ezreal warmly, the look in his eyes saying more than any words ever could. "I figured you wouldn't want me to visit you with everyone around. You always wanted discretion and all."

Ezreal grew serious at his words. "Listen. I don't know how long I was gone; I spent that time mixed up in the future - long story, I'll tell you later - and I realized something. Every moment is important and we shouldn't spend time hiding from who we are. Head summoners be damned; I'm not keeping this a secret anymore."

A million thoughts and questions fought each other in Taric's mind, but in the end he chose to pull him closer, saying simply, "Let's get you home."

"I already am."

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**Ending note: **Yes, he uses Arcane Shift like Jeannie from I Love Jeannie uses magic. I couldn't help myself.

Anyway, that was the TRUE end. Like I said before; more wasn't planned before, but flattery got you guys another chapter. I hope you enjoyed this, and thanks to the people I had beta read the various drafts for me (IdiotAnonymous and Manix the first 4 parts, and Manix again for the true ending).


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